Welcome to Working Well and How to Get Started

Would you like to bring more zest into your job and connect more deeply with why you work?

If your answer is YES! This blog is for you.

Why should you care about working well?

Whether we’re consumed by long and strenuous work hours or we’re worried about our job security and professional direction, work is a primary domain of our life.

According to a 2014 Gallup poll, 39% of workers in the U.S. spent over 50 hours per week on work, and another statistics points out that employee engagement wavers around only 30-35% depending on the month.

If you’re in the group who works a lot but isn’t emotionally connected to the work you do, it’s time to consider how to take control of your professional future.

Work has an impact on our health and well-being. According to the American Institute of Stress, being overworked is a primary source of stress in our live.

If workplace stress goes unchecked it takes a toll on our mental and physical health, and ultimately lead to problems in other areas our life.

Work stress along with the fact that there’s an ever-changing work climate requires us to consider what work means in our lives and how to adapt to the socio-economic shifts that will continue to take place.

Work doesn’t have to be a mental and emotional burden. Work can be a natural extension of who we are and what we believe in.

We can accomplish this if we incorporate our gifts, strengths, and unique expression into our work.

How to start working well

1. Make work meaningful

Work doesn’t have to just be something you do out of obligation or to bring home the bacon. Of course work is about earning money, but work can also become an activity that adds value to your life and the life of others.

The reason why we work can start to expand beyond just climbing the corporate ladder and making more dough, and start to include a deeper sense of meaning.

Meaningful work comes from making a contribution and having a sense of purpose.

Meaningful work comes from having a mission you’re passionate about.

You can find an organization that has a mission you align with or you can create this through a more self-employed path.

What is your work mission? How can you start making a difference through your work today?

2. Make work more enjoyable

Not everyone can find their dream job and get paid to do what they love, but we can certainly find ways to align our work with our natural strengths and interests.

One way to do this is by applying your signature strengths. Signature strengths are a term that the field of Positive Psychology has given to those natural traits and virtues we possess that energize us and keep us engaged and enthusiastic about our work. Learn more about signature strengths here and then consider how you can incorporate these into your work.

Another way to make work enjoyable is to consider your personal interests. When we are doing something that we’re interested in and curious about we are more likely to be engaged and experience flow. The more often we experience flow during our day the better we’re likely to feel.

3. Make work more manageable

Let’s say you hate your job, what can you do? If you’re not in a position to change jobs or can’t find a way to implement the above suggestions, you can at least learn to manage and cope with your dreaded J.O.B.

We can all grow our coping skills to deal with work related issues.

Learning how to manage stress and build resiliency is helpful whether we enjoy work or not. Sometimes there’s a whirlwind of stress and we need to manage it.

It’s important to have a relaxation ritual when life gets stressful and to maintain our self-care.

How do you relax when you notice you’re experiencing high levels of stress?

Creating more balance in your work and lifestyle is also an important aspect to a thriving life, along with creating outlets beyond your work life.

If your job doesn’t emotionally fulfill you, where in your life can you start getting emotional nourishment?

Working well is all about bringing more passion into your work. It’s about doing work that resonates with who you are and uncovering how to supercharge your career trajectory by understanding this.

I look forward to connecting and learning how this blog can help you to work well!

About Joe Wilner

Joe Wilner is a life coach, licensed clinical psychotherapist (LCP), and drummer from the band Yes You Are. He is also creator of You Have a Calling, a blog and online community helping people discover and pursue their life’s work and mission. Through deep and personalized coaching, he helps ambitious, creative, and spiritually minded individuals make a greater impact, grow as leaders, and design a soulful life they are inspired by.

APA Reference
Wilner, J. (2016). Welcome to Working Well and How to Get Started. Psych Central.
Retrieved on August 18, 2017, from https://blogs.psychcentral.com/working-well/2016/12/welcome-to-working-well-and-how-to-get-started/

Last updated: 31 Dec 2016Views expressed are those solely of the writer and have not been reviewed.
Originally published on PsychCentral.com on 31 Dec 2016. All rights reserved.